Prabhu Kasthuriraja (* 25 February 1978), professionally known as Dhanush, is a Tamil film actor and playback singer in Chennai, India. His filmography includes the critically acclaimed films Thulluvadho Ilamai, Kadhal Kondein and Pudhupettai. His commercially successful films include Thiruda Thirudi, Thiruvilayadal Arambam, Polladhavan, Yaaradi Nee Mohini and Padikathavan. He is the son of film director Kasthuri Raja.

Early work, 2002

Following his upbringing as the son of a noted director, Dhanush debuted under the direction of his arima Kasthuri Raja in the Thulluvadho Ilamai with fellow debutant, Sherin. Upon release, the film fetch up big reviews and was a blockbuster, following the story of his character, Mahesh, and how his friends help him elope with his girlfriend .

But Dhanush's breakthrough film was in his brother Selvaraghavan's debut directorial venture, Kadhal Kondein. The film portrayed Dhanush as a mentally-disturbed youth, Vinodh, who yearned for the love of his friend, played by Sonia Agarwal, eventually turning possessive over her. Upon release, the film won critical acclaim and became a commercial success, capitulating Dhanush into the main foray of actors in Tamil films.Furthermore his next film, release dlater in 2003, Thiruda Thirudi became a blockbuster. Appearing in his first hero-centric film, Dhanush earned rave reviews for his portrayal opposite debutant Chaya Singh. Furthermore, his performance in the song, Manmadha Rasa, was appreciated, subsequently earning the song cult status.

Despite achieving three profitable ventures in his first three films, Dhanush's following films all failed, damaging his status as a lead actor in Tamil films. The first failure was his first action film, Pudhukottaiyilirundhu Saravanan opposite Aparna Pillai, which despite receiving a Telugu dubbing, was lamented by critics as a "poor film". This was followed by Ramana's Sullan, which received negative reviews cliaming that Dhanush could not fit into the mould of an action hero due to his slim physique.[2][8] However the film, which had Sindhu Tolani as the lead heroine, was dubbed into Telugu as Maurya. The third and most-criticized failure was Dreams alongside two new heroines.The film directed by his father, like their previous venture was released with reviews claiming it was another adult film. This hampered the film's progress, and the film remains Dhanush's biggest failure til date.

In 2005, Dhanush had two average grossers in Devathaiyai Kanden and the much-hyped Balu Mahendra's Adhu Oru Kana Kaalam. The former was a commercial venture, directed by debutant Boopathy Pandian, which despite receiving average reviews on Dhanush's performance, was dubbed into Telugu.Balu Mahendra's film featured Dhanush opposite Priyamani in an off-beat venture. The film received rave reviews but failed to succeed at the box-office.Recent work, 2006 - present

Dhanush's biggest film, in terms of budget, til date is the 2006-released Pudhupettai. The film, re-united him with his brother after their successful previous venture, pitted him against two prominent heroines Sneha and Sonia Agarwal.The movie is about the rites of passages in the life and times of an everyday-man who ends up as a dreaded gangster, 'Kokki' Kumar, the role portrayed by Dhanush. A critic praised Dhanush's relaistic portrayal, claiming that "as the innocent boy who transmogrifies into a bloody criminal, Dhanush is utterly believable. The subtle changes in his body language and his ability to give every expression a deeper meaning make the character more interesting. This is certainly one of his better performances." The film which became universally critically praised, failed to relate to Tamil Nadu audiences and ended up being an average grosser at the box-office, despite the positive reviews. The film fared marginally better, in the Telugu dubbed version, titled Dhoolpet. Dhanush achieved his first hit in three years with the commercial entertainer Thiruvilayadal Arambam, alongside Shriya Saran and Prakash Raj. The comedy film, showed the relationship between a poor man who loved the sister of a businessman. The film was well-received by critics and audiences alike.

Dhanush's first release of 2007, Parattai Engira Azhagu Sundaram, flopped at the box-office, gaining negative reviews in the process. The film, which was a remake of the successful Kannada language film, Jogi, starred him opposite Meera Jasmine However, his second film released during Diwali 2007, became a blockbuster at the box office, in which his performance was raved. Polladhavan, based on 1948-Italian neorealist The Bicycle Thieves, featured Dhanush opposite Divya Spandana, and the film's "fresh screenplay" by director Vetrimaran helped the film become a super hit.

The remake of a successful Telugu film directed by his brother, was the plotline for Dhanush's first 2008 release. Directed by debutant M. Jawahar, Yaaradi Nee Mohini with Nayantara became a big blockbuster at the box-office. He later appeared in a cameo appearance, for his father-in-law Rajnikanth's venture, Kuselan, being portrayed as himself in a song sequence. His latest venture was in Suraj's Padikathavan opposite Tamanna Bhatia which had a January 2009 release. His performance was praised, with Sify.com citing that "Dhanush is in top form in his dance" and "has improved a lot in action", with claims that the climax fight featuring him was "outstanding" and the film has become a super hit giving Dhanush a "hatrick successes". His forthcoming ventures include a collaboration with his brother in Idhu Maalai Nerathu Mayakkam alongside Andrea Jeremiah as well Kutty opposite Shriya Saran. He is also acting in the film Aadu Kalam directed by Vetrimaran. He will also act in the remake of his father-in-law's yesteryear 1989 comedy flick Mappillai which has been given the same title. A film with Hari has also been announced, which is said to launch in July 2010.Personal life

Dhanush was born to film director Kasthuri Raja. Dhanush is married to actor Rajinikanth's daughter Aishwarya Rajinikanth. They have a son named Yathra born in 2006. The couple are now expecting their second child. He had passed out from St. John's School, Alwarthirunagar. His brother, the director Selvaraghavan is married to Sonia Agarwal, who has acted opposite Dhanush in two films. Furthermore, Dhanush has two elder sisters.

Facebook Account

In August 2009, Dhanush publicly announced that an account on Facebook under the name "Dhanush Kastoori Raja" was not him and was a fake user, taking his identity. The account had nearly 4000 friends added, which the actor claimed were mostly global fans of his. He ordered the user to deactivate the account immediately, before any intentions of tarnishing his image, while he takes up the issue with cyber-crime authorities.